The goal of this education grant is to establish summer programs that prepare young underrepresented minorities for a career in neuroscience. This application takes advantage of the strong ties fostered by a recent, official alliance between Meharry Medical College and Vanderbilt School of Medicine. The long-term commitment of each institution to training in neuroscience has fostered the creation of a unique plan, combining Meharry's strength in minority recruitment and training with Vanderbilt's strength in basic neuroscience research and training. Each institution has a funded training program in neuroscience that will benefit from the enhanced diversity generated by a partnership between a research-intensive institution and an institution that has a historic focus on training African-American minorities. The specific aims are threefold: (1) Establishment of an undergraduate summer research program in Neuroscience at Meharry, targeting underrepresented minority students. Research opportunities will be offered at Vanderbilt as well as Meharry. (2)Development of an intensive entry-level course at Vanderbilt to prepare entering graduate students for the Meharry/Vanderbilt Ph.D. degree program. This course will be taught in the summer prior to entry into graduate school. (3) Creation of an infrastructure that will promote the success of a joint alliance-training program in Neuroscience, including the establishment of an interdisciplinary Ph.D. degree in Neuroscience at Meharry Medical College.